Waste management group Shanks has won a contract to recycle 15,000 tons of glass for Heineken — the equivalent of about nine million 330ml bottles.

Heineken has traditionally sold its beer into both brown and green bottles, but has said it will only use green bottles in the future.

The brown bottle, which has been in use for 80 years but is found only in the Netherlands, will be phased out from February next year.

Because of this, the brewer needs to recycle its entire inventory of brown bottles, some 15,000 tons of glass.

The contract has been awarded to Van Tuijl, Shanks’s recycling business. The company acquired Van Tuijl in 2011, and has since splashed out on the business to double its recycling capacity, commissioning a new furnace this year.

Michael van Hulst, managing director of Shanks, said: “Heineken is a key customer for us and we are delighted to be helping them transition to green bottles as part of their stated ambition to be the greenest international brewer in the world.”